The new Illinois senator is expected to be sworn into office
later this week.

"I really never doubted that I would be seated," Burris said
in a nationally broadcast television interview Tuesday. "It was
just a matter of going through the process and making sure that the
Senate rules were abided by," he said.

Asked on NBC's "Today" show about any role that Obama might
have played in softening the opposition to his seating by Senate
Democratic leaders Harry Reid and Dick Durbin, Burris said, "I
have no knowledge of what the president-elect did."

Reid and Durbin made the announcement of acceptance in a joint
statement Monday, saying Burris "is now the senator-designate from
Illinois and, as such, will be accorded all the rights and
privileges of a senator-elect."

Burris, in turn, called himself honored and humbled to be the
state's newest senator. "I'm thankful for the opportunity to
serve," he said at a news conference in Chicago. "I recognize
that my appointment triggered a challenging time for many."

The development prevented the impasse that has plagued Democrats
from dragging on into Obama's inauguration festivities, and it
capped a gradual retreat by the Senate's top Democrats.

They had initially tried to dissuade Blagojevich, who faces
criminal charges, from making an appointment and suggested that his
pick would not be seated. Last week, Burris' credentials were
rejected in a circus-like atmosphere that tarnished the opening day
festivities of the new Congress.

But Reid and Durbin said they now anticipate that Burris, a
former Illinois attorney general, will be seated this week, barring
objections from Republicans.

They made the announcement after Burris lawyers delivered to the
Capitol documents certifying his appointment to Obama's seat, and
the secretary of the Senate determined that the paperwork met
Senate requirements.

In an interview on MSNBC, Burris reiterated that he had made no
deal with Reid not to run for a full Senate term in 2010 in
exchange for being allowed to take his seat in the chamber now.

He said he would work in the Senate to win approval of Obama's
economic stimulus package in the hope that the measure would help
the economy and create jobs. "I would like to see thousands of
jobs created in Illinois and millions of jobs created in the
country," Burris said.

Reid, D-Nev., and Durbin, D-Ill., said they were satisfied both
with the documents and with Burris' testimony before the Illinois
House impeachment panel that he did nothing wrong.

Even though Burris does not stand accused of wrongdoing, Senate
Democrats rejected Burris last week, only to quickly backpedal
after Obama himself privately weighed in and senators fretted that
the situation was diverting their focus at a critical time.

Asked Tuesday if his service in the Senate could still carry a
taint because of Blagojevich's legal problems, Burris said he
didn't think so.

"They need to look at my record ... what I have done over the
years as a citizen of our state," Burris said.

He also declined to join in calls for Blagojevich to resign,
saying "my position is that you're innocent in this legal system
until you're proven guilty."

He said any demand that he would make for Blagojevich to step
down "would have no effect."